Every
time I review a Mystery Science Theater 3000
disc I reiterate what this show is about for those -
usually people
outside the US -
who are unfamiliar with it. I've getting rather sick of
it, so here is Mystery Science Theater 3000 (or MST3K for
short) in short: it is a now defunct TV show that lampoons very bad
science fiction and horror movies. It is very, very funny and well-worth
checking out.
Unfortunately you
won?t find any of the handful of episodes that made its way to DVD
anywhere outside the States and Canada. That's right, they are only
available on Region 1 DVDs and if you're living in,
let's say, the UK then
there's no point in you rushing off to your local HMV or Virgin for a
copy. You won?t find any. If you own a region-derestricted DVD player
capable of playing Region 1 discs, then you can mail order DVDs from
Amazon.
Depending on the
strength of your local currency relative to the US dollar, international
postage fees, import taxes and the like, it may end up costing you a
pretty penny, but the chances are you won?t be dissatisfied.
The Brain That
Wouldn't Die just may not be the ideal place for you to start if
you've never seen any of the show's episodes. While not bad, there are
funnier episodes out there. Usually I tell site visitors to check out
Mystery Science Theater 3000: the Movie
instead.
Alternatively,
you can easily buy
one of the three MST3K box sets available (each contains four discs) along
with two of my personal favourite episodes, namely
Eegah! and Manos - the Hands of Fate on
DVD.
The Brain That
Wouldn't Die, while obviously a bad movie, isn't one of the worst
movies to be spoofed by the MST3K crowd though.
Made in the late 1950s and shot for cheap on B&W, it's about a medical
doctor who manages to save the head of his decapitated girlfriend after a
car accident. He somehow manages to preserve the talking head (pun
intended).
However, being a
disembodied head doesn't have a lot of perks, and the girlfriend plots
revenge ? an unlikely option if it wasn't for the horrific
Frankenstein-like creature (another product of
the good doctor's experiments) being held prisoner in a nearby closet.
Meanwhile, the
slightly unorthodox doctor is cruising strip joints in search of a new
body for his girlfriend.
Yup, we're talking
early 'Sixties sleaze here - quite tame and even naive by
today's
standards. (Also check out the documentary
Mau Mau Sex Sex for a good time . . .)
THE
DISC: The MST3K version of the movie appears on the disc along
with the original movie. However, unlike the Eegah! disc you don't
have the option of viewing scenes cut from the original movie for running
time purposes for the simple reason that this is a double-sided disc and
the unedited The Brain That Wouldn't Die appears on the other side.
WORTH IT? If
you only want The Brain That Wouldn't Die this apparently isn't the
DVD for to buy though. Apparently the so-called ?Special Edition? version
distributed by Image boasts a much better print with superior sound and
image quality than this one.
That is, like I
said, if you want only the original movie. If you're like the rest of us,
then you'd probably stick to the MST3K version, which at least
makes up the jokes for you . . .
RECOMMENDATION:
The Brain That Wouldn't Die is recommended to those already
familiar with the show. Newbies should however check out some of the other
episodes I mentioned in this review instead.
